Man accused of shoving 78-year-old father off Texas cliff

Credit: DaytonDailyNews

A Texas man is accused of pushing his 78-year-old father off a cliff west of Austin, authorities said.

Gerald McCants, 49, of Austin, was charged with injury to the elderly, KVUE reported. His bail at the Travis County Jail was set at $20,000, the television station reported.

According to an arrest affidavit by the Austin Police Department, McCants left the family home around 8:30 a.m. and returned a few minutes later, KXAN reported. According to the affidavit, McCants' father said his son was excited to show him a rattlesnake he had found.

The pair drove to an area in west Austin, where police said McCants “lured (the victim) a few yards off the road near a cliff saying that the rattlesnake was over there,” the television station reported.

When the older man went to look, McCants pushed his father, causing him to fall through dense brush about 40 to 50 feet, KVUE reported. According to the arrest affidavit, McCants could be heard laughing as his father fell.

The man suffered deep cuts to his forehead and the back of his head and other minor cuts, the television station reported.

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